20 reviews of this school

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Mt. Woodson Elementary School1

Posted July 07, 2014
- a parent

I agree with the one star parents.... I was at Mt. Woodson school daily so I saw first hand how bad this school was! Tired grumpy teacher's and a new principal that has the deer in the headlights look. Our daughter was picked on daily, we tried to stick it out as this school is one mile from our home....... Its is true that this school is full of bullies and not much seems to be done. Other schools are proactive with lessons special assemblies to address bully issues. Yes the score are so bad here.....sad the staff seem to want parents to move to another school and do little to bring up scores. Yes I work with our daughter and do my part as a parent so with that said I will transfer to another school in Ramona. I hope at some point someone steps up and looks into what is really going on at Mt. Woodson school! Low scores, bullies, tired teacher's, bad principal and yes if your child has any special education needs they talk a good game....watch out beware of non compliance on IEP no follow up drop balls not the best school if your child has an IEP!

I can't say enough about what a great school this is. My children thrived, made lifelong friends and were given a wonderful education. It seems the less involved the parent is the more complaints they have. It is not the schools job to raise the child.

My son attended Mt. Woodson it was an awful experience! This school is full of Bullies! Teachers and principal do nothing to stop the bullies! Scores are low if hour child has special needs RUN from this school! Please don't put your child in this school! Do to the fact scores are so bad you have a right to transfer to another school in the district! Shame on fhd district office for sweeping serious issues under the carpet! Bullies, Teachers that need to retire and a rooky principal make for a nightmare that no family should be subject to! If I could give 0 stars I would!!

The school is in a Program Improvement (PI) because it failed to achieve Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) for two consecutive years in order to exit PI. My advice is to get as much information about the school and its teachers prior to enrolling your child to make sure there is an appropriate fit. Our experience is that some of the teachers are rigid, they do their job that they are paid for and no more. It's the extra effort and natural love for the profession and children that makes a great teacher. Unfortunately that is greatly lacking in some of the teachers. There's a new Principal this year. Hopefully my child will see a difference this year from last year due to this change at the top. Until then my experience is that this is a school that lacks the motivation to be an 8 out of 10 school as it is currently rated by GreatSchools. I would give it at best a 4.

Moved from another district to Mt Woodson for the last 2 months of first grade. My daughter was struggling and disliked school. In the 2 short months she was there she transformed! She loves school and the wonderful teachers at Mt. Woodson assisted her in learning to read! She has gained more in the short time she has been there than all the months at her old school. Mt Woodson is a great school and has friendly and knowlegable teachers and staff. They will treat your child as an individual not a walking test score!

The first thing you notice when you walk in the door, is the cold uncaring rude behavior of the office staff. My children served their time at this school, that has a few truly caring teachers among a group of jaded, sarcastic, mediocre (at best) teachers, many that should have retired long ago! The real problem is the principal who lacks control over this unprofessional group. Sadly the teachers with bad attitudes out number the few who are afraid to speak out. As a parent, volunteer and PTA member it was clear that nothing would change until the principal herself left. We just stuck it out, and suffered... The entire family is so happy to be out of that school. In spite of it all, my kids are thriving at the middle and high school levels. Mt. Woodson, you have room for MUCH improvement. Why not start with getting in a truly caring, capable, high achieving principal who will put children's best interests first, rather than fear of upsetting the toxic crew that work there.

Mt. Woodson is a fantastic school. My son started in Kindergarten with Mrs. Tamburrino. Both she and Mrs. Brown had our kids reading and spelling at a mid 1st grade level by the end of the year. The 1st grade teachers were thrilled. Now my son is in the 2nd grade, his teacher Mrs. Stemm is a delight. She is always finding fun ways to teach (hatching beetles in class) for instance. The PTA is outstanding. They plan events and activities for all students and work tirelessly throughout the year. If not for the PTA most of the extracurricular events wouldn't take place.

Mt Woodson has been a fantastic experience for my child. The staff is professional and excited to be a part of this school. I have gotten 'top notch' support and responsiveness from my teachers as well as the administration. My child has special needs and recieves excellent support through a fully included program and expert special education staff.

First impressiion is that this school is a good example of what an elementary school should be. The school appears focused on learning, instead of just raising test scores. While the school is keeping an eye on overall score performance, the administration looks to develop the 'whole student' towards a balance of future citizen.